The time has come to consider banning motorcycles from the roads, police chiefs have told MPs.

They are ‘motorised toys’ which may not belong on public highways, the Association of Chief Police Officers told the Commons Transport Committee.

The association based its call on the false claim that production motorcycles are ‘readily available’ with top speeds of over 200mph. In fact not a single production motorcycle has broken the 200mph barrier.

The association said: ‘Production machines are readily available for use on our roads with top speeds in excess of 200mph. Motorcycles are seen in the UK to be, in the majority of instances, vehicles of choice rather than necessity and one might consider if our congested roads are any longer fit for purpose for these motorised toys.’

The comments have been published in a report by the committee on road safety. They were part of ACPO’s official response to a committee consultation.

The ACPO memo calls for the creation of no-motorcycle zones and points to power caps. It states: ‘There is a need for radical thinking in respect of motorcycles, including consideration of engine capability and the creation of protection zones where all motorcycles other than those specifically permitted would be prohibited.’

The association also calls for motorcycles to be fitted with chips to allow police to identify them from a distance, and tougher penalties for illegal number plates. It says: ‘The detection of motorcycling offences is problematic, encouraging non-compliance. This includes Vehicle Excise Duty evasion on a massive scale.

‘For this reason, stricter penalties should be introduced for non-compliant registration plates and further work should be done on the development of such products as number plates containing chips that will allow automated vehicle identification, even at high speeds.’

In fact official Government research shows just 6.5% of motorcycles are untaxed.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 15th, 2008 at 9:01 pm and is filed under Motorcycle News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.